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The Kids are Alright
#1

-Denver, Colorado

As the curtain fell on the SMJHL's S44 Regular Season, the standings fell with just one or two major surprises. Detroit was in first by a comfortable margin, St. Louis and Vancouver had battled to a second and third place finish respectively, and Kelowna was out of the playoffs after a long stretch of league dominance. The Colorado Raptors, however, with lofty expectations entering the season that turned to being sellers at the trade deadline, found themselves locked into fifth place and on course for a fourth straight first round playoff matchup with the Montreal Militia.

Speaking to Raptors management about their decision to be sellers at the deadline, General Manager Sebastian Frost had this to say, "As an organization, we had to take a look at the players we had on expiring contracts and those players that we were expecting to lose to the SHL for next season. We made some moves that we felt maximized the value that we were going to be able to get for those players, rather than losing them for nothing. It wasn't an easy decision for us to make, but we feel like we have a core in place with our S44 Draftees that this was the right move. Some tough moments, trading guys that had spent their entire career here, captains, players that truly loved the city of Denver and this organization."

Frost went on to say that they felt the upcoming draft class was going to be a very strong one and that they would be able to pick up some players that would compliment their rising stars well. However, many in the media have taken to questioning Frost's first deadline at the helm of the Raptors. The young General Manager traded seven of his top nine forwards as well as his top pair of defensemen, overwhelmingly for future picks. From six trades (Vladimir Vaskov to Detroit, Sachimo Zoidberg Jr to Montreal, Tony Pepperoni to Detroit, Kevin Maddox to Vancouver, Gvidas Kazlauskas to Detroit, and Alex Winters and Philipp Winter to St. Louis), Frost and the Raptors walked away with top 4 defenseman Veikka Toivanen, top 9 forward Xavier Cross, top line forward Lillie Jacobs, and a Detroit 2nd Round Pick in either S45 or S46, Detroit's 3rd Round Picks in S46 and 47, St. Louis's 3rd Round Pick in S47, St. Louis's 4th Round Pick in S45, Vancouver's 4th Round Pick in S46, and Detroit's 6th Round Pick in either S45 or S46. For those keeping track at home, that's 3 skaters and 7 picks in exchange for 6 players, 4 of whom are expected to make their SHL debuts next season and one who is on an expiring contract and is expected to retire. While many around the league question the value Frost received for several bonafide star players, this writer would ask, isn't some value better than losing them for free?

Objectively, those questioning the value have a fair point. The Cold Pizza line being traded for two 3rds and two 4ths would be less than spectacular value. Frost had this to say specifically on the two trades that saw his first line move to St. Louis and Detroit, "When it came to trading Alex, Philipp and Tony, we knew those guys were part of our core here for the last few years and that they had established themselves as players that could help any team that was looking for that extra thing to put them over the top. Alex and Philipp had that documented chemistry from both this year and last, with two different centers, Tony and [Vancouver Whalers center Andrew] Martin. It was good for both of them as well as St. Louis to see that, they knew they were getting two elite players that have shown they can produce at this level. That was no different than what Detroit got in Tony, elite center, but an even better person. We truly need more people like Tony in the SMJHL, and Detroit has gotten themselves a stellar example of everything you want in a player."

To this point, we haven't even really addressed the biggest reason that the Raptors management felt comfortable moving their team leaders and top players. The Raptors had a fantastic draft class in a smaller year, hitting home runs with all of their picks. 

With the first overall pick, the Raptors selected German forward Alexander Selich who had, by his own extremely high standards, a "disappointing" season. Despite putting up 26 points (12 G and 14 A), Selich should see a marked improvement in his overall production next season when he steps into a first line role more predominately in his second season. While he did feature there after the trade deadline, he will see his minutes increase from just over 16:30 this season to closer to 20 in the upcoming campaign. Selich is expected to play a huge role during the playoffs for the Raptors, and much of their success in the playoffs is likely to revolve around Selich's ability to make things happen with his linemates. "I can't say enough positive things about Alexander. He's been a consummate professional and an absolute pleasure to have here in Colorado. I think he's going to be a great player at the next level as well as for us in the future," said Frost.

At fourth overall, the Raptors addressed a key need, selecting Ukrainian center Konstantin Voloshin. Voloshin had a successful season, immediately stepping into the second line center spot from the first game on and staying on that line all season. He finished with 15 goals and 13 assists this season for the Raptors and is expected to continue on the second line into the playoffs. His talent has shown through fantastic games on a somewhat regular basis, and he has well earned the top prospect billing for the upcoming SHL Draft, where he is expected to be a top 10 pick. From General Manager Frost, "I've never heard anyone say a bad word about Voloshin as a person, and my experiences with him this season have fully backed that up. He's a great player, fantastic person. One of the big things we really worked on with Konstantin this season was his defense and his faceoffs, and I think they improved significantly over the course of the season. Someone is going to get a fantastic player at the next level when they select him."

A true team need, Cassius Darrow was selected 8th Overall by the Raptors, a pick that at the time took some by surprise, but was well lauded in the GM community. Darrow backed up that confidence by putting together a remarkable season, 5 goals with 24 assists for the rookie defenseman. His calming presence on the back end has many lauding him as a sure thing in the upcoming SHL Draft where he is currently projected to be a top 5 pick. Darrow has shown a connection to the league and organization that is second to none, and he invoked these words from his General Manager this season, "Cassius is a guy that we felt very strongly about coming into the season and through the draft process. We felt like he was someone that we could rely on to be a crucial part of our organization, and during the combine interviews, Cassius expressed a significant interest in coming to Colorado and being a Raptor. When the draft came around, we felt confident that we were going to be able to get Cassius, but the last minute trade by Anchorage had us worried. I think we both got the player we wanted at the end of the day, and I couldn't be more thrilled that we have someone as great as Cassius representing this organization."

When they drafted Czech winger Jakub Novak at 13th Overall, there was some hope that the Raptors would play him with Czech winger Alex Winters and their next pick, a line that Novak dubbed the "Czech Us Out Line." While that wasn't able to come to fruition before Winters was sent to St. Louis, Novak still had a respectable season, if not an unusual one for him. Finishing with 4 goals and 13 assists, the Czech sniper was perplexing to watch. He was perhaps a bit unlucky, shooting just 6.45% on the season, but his assist numbers saved him from a truly dismal season. The Raptors and Novak both have confidence that with even a league average shooting percentage next season, to go with increased minutes, Novak will be an elite sniper in the SMJHL. "Jakub was pretty snakebitten this season. There is no way that a player of his caliber should have finished with just 4 goals, but we're pretty confident that he's going to come up big for us in the playoffs and next season as well. He's got the talent, everyone can see that. he's just got to connect a bit better now."

The next pick for the Raptors was another Czech, this time center Zivan Zidek. Unlike Novak, Zidek is a playmaker first and foremost. Not to say that he can't put the puck in the back of the net, but he certainly looks to pass it first. Zidek had some success this year with a very respectable 14 points given the amount of time he spent on the ice. While there had been reports that Zidek was displeased with the way Raptors management handled the trade deadline, the air has reported been cleared since. "Zivan is a tremendous player that has high expectations for both himself and the teams he is a part of. While he may not have agreed with all the decisions we made as a staff this season, we worked very hard with him and the others on the team to make sure they understood why we made the choices we did. We were shocked that he was available when it came time for us to make our selection in the third round, but we weren't complaining. Although his year wasn't the best rookie year, we think that he has set himself up well for the future and the next season. He and Jakub have a pretty great connection out there and we are excited to have them both."

While the Raptors weren't able to draft a goalie despite having a need to do so, they were able to sign undrafted free agent Aleksandr Aleksandrov. Though he backed up star goaltender Scottey Crawfling, when he did make appearances, he looked comfortable in net and not at all overwhelmed, an impressive feat for an young goalie. "Aleksandr came in here as someone that we weren't really sure what we were getting. He wasn't draft eligible but I guess some paperwork got mixed up or something, since we were able to sign him a week later. He's a kid that has a tremendous amount of talent and I can't wait to see what he does once he becomes the starter here full time."

After the trade deadline, the team without expectations played some of their best hockey of the season. They won 7 in a row at one point and the youth movement was a big reason. Selich, Darrow, Voloshin, Novak and Zidek all had key roles in the organization's late push to the playoffs. And with a 2-1 lead over the Montreal Militia currently, the kids again are a big part of it. When the Raptors management decided to trade key players at the deadline, the faith in the youth being talented enough to carry the organization played a big role. That faith has been repaid heavily so far and Frost is looking like he knows what he is doing in just his first year at the helm. The future is bright here in Colorado, and that's all due to the fact that the kids are alright after all.

Word Count: 2026




Alex Winters (retired)
Matej Winters (retired)
Dominik Winters
S45 Jesster Trophy Winner
Challenge Cup Winning Goal Club: S52
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